A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains or may contain material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the photocopy reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure in exactly the form it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, and more particularly to a relatively higher success rate progressive gaming device which enables a player to build potential awards as game play continues and which enables the player to realize the potential awards relatively frequently.
Progressive gaming machines have become very popular. Known progressive slot machines contain jackpots that increase every time a player plays the slot machine. An individual progressive slot machine has a self contained jackpot, wherein the jackpot grows with every play. A linked progressive includes two or more slot machines connected to a common jackpot, each of which individually contribute to the jackpot. The machines usually take a percentage of the player""s bet, such as 10%, and add it to the jackpot. The jackpots can reach sizeable amounts such as $1 million before a player hits or wins the jackpot. Such sizeable jackpots are very attractive to players. Furthermore, as the jackpot grows, so does overall payout percentage of the game.
Regardless of the type of progressive, known games typically require the player to play the maximum bet to be eligible to win the progressive jackpot. Even on a single payline dollar machine, the maximum bet can be $5 (max bet on most slot machines is 5 credits per payline). Many players who are not willing to wager such an amount, or consistently willing to wager such an amount, are thus excluded from having an opportunity to win the progressive jackpot and enjoy its associated payout increase. A known progressive slot machine that requires a max bet to enable the player to win a jackpot is a Megabucks(copyright) game by IGT, the assignee of the present invention.
Another known progressive slot machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,820 (hereafter xe2x80x9cthe ""820 patentxe2x80x9d), which issued on Aug. 4, 1998, and which is also assigned to IGT. The ""820 patent discloses that the jackpot can be preset to an amount more than any other progressive award of the associated game. Preferably, however, the top award jackpot is a progressive value that increases as a function of each coin deposited in the machine. The ""820 patent discloses that the player wins the progressive jackpot by successfully entering a bonus game and successfully playing the bonus game.
The ""820 patent also discloses a secondary progressive game, wherein the player obtains letters of a phrase or pieces of a puzzle by randomly generating letter or puzzle piece outcomes. As the player accumulates letters or pieces, the game accumulates a bonus value. If the player completes the phrase or puzzle, the game enables the player to play a second bonus game. In the secondary bonus game, the game designates the number of picks that the player has from a progressive award pool based on the bonus value, e.g., one pick if the bonus value is less than 2000 credits, two picks if the bonus value is between 2000 and 2999, etc.
The secondary game is progressive because if the player walks away from the game before completing the phrase or puzzle, the game, rather than resetting the phrase or puzzle to an initial state, enables the next player to finish the uncompleted phrase or puzzle. The next player also inherits any accumulated bonus value.
Both the jackpot progressive and the secondary game enable a player to build potential awards as game play continues, although the secondary game enables the player to realize the potential awards much more frequently than does the jackpot progressive. The jackpot progressive has a very low success or hit rate and is typically a very high return game. Both types of games and more particularly the secondary game enable the player to supplement wins or offset losses experienced in the base game of the gaming device. In either case, players enjoy progressive and potential award building type games because they add variety to the gaming experience. A need therefore exists to provide a higher success or hit rate progressive gaming device, which enables a player to build potential awards as game play continues, and which enables the player to realize the potential awards relatively frequently.
The gaming device of the present invention provides a set and preferably a plurality of sets of symbols. The base game, be it slot, poker, keno, blackjack or another game randomly generates the symbols during regular base game play. The present invention also preferably includes a value database. A value is associated with each symbol. The association may be predetermined or randomly determined. The value database may alternatively be weighted such that at least one value is more likely to be randomly generated than at least one other value.
Upon generating a complete set of symbols, the game provides a progressive award associated with said set to the player. The progressive award includes at least one of the values and preferably each of the values associated with the symbols of the completed set. The progressive award is most preferably an addition of each of the values for the symbols of the completed set.
The present invention preferably includes a plurality of sets of symbols and a plurality of well known random generation devices for generating the symbols for each set. The random generation devices may include, for example, at least one slot machine reel having a plurality of symbols, a deck of cards or a set of keno numbers.
In one slot machine embodiment, one or more reels include at least one changeable symbol that morphs or changes into one of a plurality of the symbols upon the base game generation of a preset combination of symbols along a payline. In a poker embodiment, the game generates a card upon the base game generation of a preset card combination. In a blackjack embodiment, the game generates a card upon the base game generation of a preset blackjack outcome. In a keno embodiment, the game generates a number upon the base game generation of a preset keno outcome.
The base game generates base game awards as the player plays the game. The player also wins or generates the symbols of the different symbol sets as the player plays the base game. The present invention preferably awards the progressive award of the first completed set of symbols and resets or initializes the completed set or alternatively each of the sets upon the award of the progressive award.
The present invention includes a progressive game, such that a player can generate one symbol and associated value for a set, while the player plays a first game of the present invention. If the player ends the game without completing the set, the player does not win the progressive award. The same or different player can then begin a new game, wherein the new game maintains the previously generated symbol and associated values and can thereafter generate another symbol and value for the set. A third, fourth or fifth game, etc., can accrue symbols and values therefor, whereby the game eventually provides the progressive award, which preferably includes a combination of the values for the symbols, to the player who is playing when the game completes the set.
The progressive game preferably includes a plurality of the symbol sets. Different games of the present invention likely generate symbols and values for different sets. The player who is playing when the game completes the first symbol set wins the progressive award associated with that set.
It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a progressive gaming device having a base game that generates symbols of a plurality of sets of symbols and provides a progressive award in addition to base game awards upon the first fulfillment of a set of symbols.
It is another advantage to provide a gaming device that generates values in association with generating symbols.
It is a further advantage to provide a progressive game that may be implemented with any primary game such as slot, poker, keno and blackjack.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, elements, components, steps and processes.